"Glory Field" by Walter Dean Myers is a historical novel that tells the story of five generations in the Lewis family. It begins the day that the 5th-great grandfather is kidnapped from Sierra Leone, West Africa, and sold into slavery in America. As nature goes, children are born and raised. What was life like for each generation? How did they survive through slavery? How did they react to the Civil War? And, how many died fighting for their freedom to be treated as humans? The story continues with life after the Civil War and the hatred of the Klu Klux Klan. Despite overt racism, members of the Lewis family succeeded during the 1930s in Chicago. Later, we read about the positive force of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. Where once physical manacles existed, spiritual/emotional manacles were forced on by discrimination. However, the Lewis family fights with passive resistance to have them removed. Lastly, the current generation of Lewis's demonstrate to the reader present day society - how far the Lewis's have come and how far they will go. "Glory Field" is an excellent novel that teaches all readers about how much harm racism can cause all people, regardless of color.

To learn more about the positive influences of African Americans, please visit "Slavery in America".